Miami Heat Roundtable: And so, the offseason officially begins
Who impressed you the most over the span of these five games?
Tachauer: Obviously Wade was incredible during the entire series, but his performance was expected. So for me, Winslow deserves the shoutout. He not only got going offensively (on top of showcasing his usual high-level defense), but let out this gritty, edgy side to him that I absolutely loved. I mean, the guy stepped on Embiid’s mask. Savage.
Nurse: I’ve been critical of Winslow for about two years, so I’m shocked to say that he impressed me the most in this series (besides a few boneheaded plays on both ends of the floor). He was willing to dig in and get aggressive on defense and his offense showed signs of hope, from the 3-point line to finishing drives.
Johnson: For his willingness to step up and guard Embiid, Bam Adebayo gets my vote. Adebayo has made tremendous progress this season, from the time he spent losing passes and missing lobs, to stringing together insane dunk highlights. Stepping up in the playoffs is a great start to hopefully a long Miami Heat career.
Haynes: Winslow. I absolutely love the way he played. He was all over the court, grabbing man-sized rebounds, blocking Embiid, shutting down Ben Simmons, shooting 37 percent on 3’s, aggressively attacking the rim, and making good decisions when handling the ball. The Heat love talking about winning plays and that’s all Winslow is about. He showed he can be a Draymond Green-type player on a championship team.
Gewirtz: I don’t think I can pick one player as I was impressed by all the young talent in Richardson, Adebayo and Winslow. It’s encouraging to see those players come into the playoffs and not back down from the moment, even though mistakes were made. Watching them in this series gave me hope for the future of this team.
Eyrich: Winslow brought his game to another level. He’s always been there defensively but stepped up even more so. There were times that he had what it took on the offensive end and other times where he made up for it with different roles. The “Bad Boy” mentality that he came with was fantastic. For the most part he played it perfectly. He brought more passion to his game with it and that’s what the Heat need.
Keaton: I would have to say it was Winslow. He played with a toughness that is a nice foundation to build on. Although the jump shot can still use work, he may be heading in the right direction after this series.
Sims: Goran Dragic averaged 18.6 points a game against the 76ers, to go with 2.6 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.0 steal, while shooting 38 percent from 3-point range. He was the most consistent player on the Heat and his passion and fearless demeanor gave the fan base hope that the Heat could potentially turn the series around.